The Castlemaine Mail looks back at pages from our archives in this monthly column.
20 years ago
December 13, 2002
Castlemaine legal firm HSW Lawson and Co celebrated its 150 anniversary with a re-enactment of the opening of the first Supreme Court on the goldfields, placement of a time capsule, the planting of trees and a dinner. A former Castlemaine man was charged with armed robberies at Harcourt Post Office and Winters Flat Store, and local emergency services were called out to a truck rollover at Guildford. Fortunately the driver only incurred minor injuries in the crash.
15 years ago
December 7, 2007
The 75th anniversary of post World War One project – the Great Ocean Road – was celebrated. Castlemaine had a connection to both the project and celebrations. The first charge to begin the huge project was set off on November 19, 1919 by then Premier of Victoria Castlemaine’s HSW Lawson. To mark the celebrations the Castlemaine connection was kept alive with two local vehicles, Felix Cappy’s 1928 Delarge and Roger Rayson’s 1932 Invicta, part of the convoy which marked the anniversary. In other news Swan Hill tuned up for Bendigo Country Week with a hit out against Castlemaine.
10 years ago
December 28, 2012
Local men Jed McDonald and Mat Taft were honoured to receive Bravery Awards for their efforts to rescue a woman from floodwaters in 2010. Deirdre McDonough was driving home when her car was washed off the Pyrenees Hwy and into the flooded Muckleford Creek about 9.30pm. Jed waded out and freed the woman from her submerged vehicle but the pair were unable to make it back to safety, clinging to a tree. Arriving on the scene Mat called for assistance from emergency services before managing to pull the woman to safety using a rope and lifejacket. An SES volunteer managed to rescue Jed using the same method.
5 years ago
December 22, 2017
Taradale resident Michelle Guest and her husband were fortunate to escape injury after a massive tree crashed through their loungeroom. Michelle told the Mail if the pair hadn’t gone to check on their animals during the storm, they might have been in the path of the tree.
Taradale was among the hardest hit areas during the storm which lashed the region around 7pm on Tuesday December 19, 2017 bringing down trees and powerlines. Ninety year old Joe Hancock lost a significant part of his roof and said it was the worst storm he’d seen since he settled in Taradale in 1961.